History provides us with many examples of performers immortalized because of their association with great composers. Anton Stadler inspired Mozart to write his
Clarinet Concerto. Richard Mahlfeld convinced the mature Brahms to write some of his greatest chamber music. Benny Goodman will always be remembered for commissioning works by Aaron Copland, Bela Bart¢k, Paul Hindemith and Igor Stravinsky.
During the 19th century, the clarinet evolved to become a versatile and agile instrument, much valued for its expressive and coloristic possibilities. Mechanical improvements made on the archaic chalumeau, turned the clarinet into a favorite romantic instrument. Beethoven, Weber, Mendelssohn, Schumann, Saint-Saens and Debussy, to name but a few, wrote beautiful chamber works exploiting the Iyrical and melancholic qualities of the instrument.
North/South Consonance, Inc. is proud to feature the gifts and talents of clarinetist Richard Goldsmith, who has performed with the North/South Consonance Ensemble since 1986. In this album, Mr. Goldsmith debuts as a recording soloist with premieres of recent works by six composers from the Americas.
The compositions represent a wide variety of aesthetic points of view and treat the clarinet in conventional and unique ways as well. They exploit to the fullest, the technical and musical possibilities of the instrument. The clarinet is featured in combination with the human voice, piano and electronics. The listener will be pleasantly surprised by the diversity and originality found in this collection of music.
Great care was taken to preserve the integrity of the concert hall ambiance when this recording was made. Indeed, you will find that we successfully captured both the natural resonance of the concert hall and the wide dynamic range of the music without distortion. Please use a moderate volume setting when you play this recording.
My Basket
